Primary Amines by Transfer Hydrogenative Reductive Amination of Ketones by Using Cyclometalated IrIII Catalysts

Cyclometalated iridium complexes are found to be versatile catalysts for the direct reductive amination (DRA) of carbonyls to give primary amines under transfer‐hydrogenation conditions with ammonium formate as both the nitrogen and hydrogen source. These complexes are easy to synthesise and their ligands can be easily tuned. The activity and chemoselectivity of the catalyst towards primary amines is excellent, with a substrate to catalyst ratio (S/C) of 1000 being feasible. Both aromatic and aliphatic primary amines were obtained in high yields. Moreover, a first example of homogeneously catalysed transfer‐hydrogenative DRA has been realised for β‐keto ethers, leading to the corresponding β‐amino ethers. In addition, non‐natural α‐amino acids could also be obtained in excellent yields with this method.     

Air Stable Iridium Catalysts for Direct Reductive Amination of Ketones

Half-sandwich iridium complexes bearing bidentate urea-phosphorus ligands were found to catalyze the direct reductive amination of aromatic and aliphatic ketones under mild conditions at 0.5 mol % loading with high selectivity towards primary amines. One of the complexes was found to be active in both the Leuckart–Wallach (NH₄CO₂H) type reaction as well as in the hydrogenative (H₂/NH₄AcO) reductive amination. The protocol with ammonium formate does not require an inert atmosphere, dry solvents, as well as additives and in contrast to previous reports takes place in hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) instead of methanol. Applying NH₄CO₂D or D₂ resulted in a high degree of deuterium incorporation into the primary amine α-position.     

General Reductive Amination of Aldehydes and Ketones with Amines and Nitroaromatics under H2 by Recyclable Iridium Catalysts

Heterogeneous iridium catalysts were prepared and applied for the reductive amination of aldehydes and ketones with nitroaromatics and amines using H₂ . The iridium catalysts were prepared by pyrolysis of ionic liquid 1‐methyl‐3‐cyanomethylimidazoulium chloride ([MCNI ]Cl) with iridium chloride (IrCl₃ ) in activated carbons. Iridium particles were well dispersed and stable in the N‐doped carbon materials from [MCNI ]Cl with activated carbon. The Ir@NC (600‐2h) catalyst was found to be highly active and selective for the reductive amination of aldehydes and ketones using H₂ and a variety of nitrobenzenes and amines were selectively converted into the corresponding secondary and tertiary amines. The Ir@NC (600‐2h) catalyst can be reusable several times without evident deactivation.     

Reductive Amination of Aldehydes and Ketones with Primary Amines by Using Lithium Amidoborane as Reducing Reagent

A variety of secondary amines were obtained in high isolated yields in the reductive amination of aldehydes and ketones by using lithium amidoborane as reducing agent. Compared to ammonia borane, lithium amidoborane has higher reducibility, and thus, exhibits faster reaction rate.     

Ruthenium‐Catalyzed Direct Asymmetric Reductive Amination of Diaryl and Sterically Hindered Ketones with Ammonium Salts and H2

A Ru‐catalyzed direct asymmetric reductive amination of ortho‐OH‐substituted diaryl and sterically hindered ketones with ammonium salts is reported. This method represents a straightforward route toward the synthesis of synthetically useful chiral primary diarylmethylamines and sterically hindered benzylamines (up to 97 % yield, 93–>99 % ee). Elaborations of the chiral amine products into bioactive compounds and a chiral ligand were demonstrated through manipulation of the removable and convertible ‐OH group.     

A One-Pot Selective Synthesis of N-Boc Protected Secondary Amines: Tandem Direct Reductive Amination/N-Boc Protection

A one-pot tandem direct reductive amination of aldehydes with primary amines resulting in N-Boc secondary amines using a (Boc)(2)O/sodium triacetoxyborohydride (STAB) system is reported. The tandem procedure is efficient, selective, and versatile, giving excellent yields of N-Boc protected secondary amines even in those cases where the products are prone to intramolecular lactamization.     

Ruthenium-Catalyzed Direct Reductive Amination of Carbonyl Compounds for the Synthesis of Amines: An Overview

Reductive amination is a valuable method for amine synthesis that has been the topic of a century‘s worth of in-depth study in both academia and industry. Amines and their derivatives serve as incredibly adaptable building blocks for a broad array of organic substrates and are significant precursors for a myriad of advanced chemicals, physiologically active compounds, agrochemicals, biomolecules, pharmaceuticals, and polymers. The creation of innovative catalytic processes for the long-term and selective synthesis of amines from readily accessible and environmentally benign reagents remains a top priority in chemical research. Both heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysts have been designed with success to enable these reactions to explore new amines. Ruthenium catalysts are employed in reductive amination owing to their stability, selectivity, versatility, low toxicity, and high efficiency. This review comprehensively overviews the Ru-catalyzed reductive amination processes and includes the literature from 2009 to 2022.     

Fast Reductive Amination by Transfer Hydrogenation “on Water”

Reductive amination of various ketones and aldehydes by transfer hydrogenation under aqueous conditions has been developed, by using cyclometallated iridium complexes as catalysts and formate as hydrogen source. The pH value of the solution is shown to be critical for a high catalytic chemoselectivity and activity, with the best pH value being 4.8. In comparison with that in organic solvents, the reductive amination in an aqueous phase is faster, and the molar ratio of the substrate to the catalyst (S/C) can be set as high as 1×10⁵, the highest S/C value ever reported in reductive amination reactions. The catalyst is easy to access and the reaction is operationally simple, allowing a wide range of ketones and aldehydes to react with various amines in high yields. The protocol provides a practical and environmental friendly new method for the synthesis of amine compounds.     

Nickel‐Catalyzed Enantioselective Reductive Amination of Ketones with Both Arylamines and Benzhydrazide

An asymmetric reductive amination of ketones using both arylamines and benzhydrazide in the presence of nickel catalysts was developed. A one‐pot synthesis of tetrahydroquinoxalines was also developed starting directly from α‐ketoaldehydes and 1,2‐diaminobenzene. Formic acid was used as a safe and economic surrogate for high‐pressure hydrogen gas. Strongly σ‐donating bis(alkylphosphine)s are crucial ancillary ligands for both stereoselective hydride insertion and decarboxylation of the formate.     

Asymmetric Reductive Amination in Organocatalysis and Biocatalysis

This review summarizes the recent progress of organocatalytic and biocatalytic asymmetric reductive amination (ARA), a challenging but important topic for drug discovery and the pharmaceutical industry. At present, ARA can be divided into three categories: metal catalysis, organic catalysis, and biocatalysis. In the past decade, transition metal-catalysed ARA has been well established. Organocatalytic ARA has emerged as a powerful alternative to metal-catalysed ARA, the hydrogen sources used in organocatalytic ARA are usually Hantzsch esters, benzothiazolines, boranes, and hydrosilanes, which require Lewis base or phosphoric acid catalysts to activate them to give secondary chiral amines. It is worth mentioning that biocatalytic ARA has made remarkable progress in the last decade, amino acid dehydrogenases, amine dehydrogenases, opine dehydrogenases and imine reductases have been successfully used in ARA.     

Synthesis of Primary Amines by One-Pot Reductive Amination of Aldehydes

We report here a novel, one-pot, two-step reductive amination of aldehydes for the atom-economical synthesis of primary amines. The amination step has been carried out with hydroxylammonium chloride and does not require the use of a base. In the subsequent reduction step, a metal zinc/hydrochloride acid system has been used. This method is applicable to both aliphatic and aromatic aldehydes. The operational simplicity, the short reaction times, and the mild reaction conditions add to the value of this method as a practical alternative to the reductive amination of aldehydes.

Supplemental materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition of Synthetic Communications® to view the free supplemental file.     

Catalytic One-Pot Reductive Amination of Carboxylic Acids

The broad applications of primary alkyl amines in various fields have spurred extensive interests in synthetic organic chemistry. Recently, the reductive amination of carboxylic acids has become an attractive and practical strategy for synthesizing primary alkyl amines, due to their wide availability and bench stability. However, the inherent stability and higher oxidation state of carboxylic acids render this new strategy with new challenges. This Concept provides a summary of the recent advancements in the reductive aminations of carboxylic acids, specifically focusing on the catalytic tactics, underlying mechanisms, and applications in the synthesis of valuable products.     

Earth-abundant Metal-catalyzed Reductive Amination: Recent Advances and Prospect for Future Catalysis

Nitrogen-containing compounds, as an important class of chemicals, have been used widely in pharmaceuticals, materials synthesis. Transition metal-catalyzed reductive amination of an aldehyde or a ketone with ammonia or an amine has been proved to be an efficient and practical method for the preparation of nitrogen-containing compounds in academia and industry for a century. Given the above, several effective methods using transition metals have been developed in recent years. Noble transition metals like Pd, Pt, and Au-based catalysts have been predominately used in reductive amination. Because of their high prices, strict official regulations of residues in pharmaceuticals, and deleterious effects on the biological system, their industrial applications are severely hampered. With the increasing sustainable and environmental problems, the Earth-abundant transition metals including Ti, Fe, Co, Ni, and Zr have also been investigated for the reductive amination reaction and showed great potential to the advancement of sustainable and cost-effective reductive amination processes. This critical review will mainly summarize the work using Earth-abundant metals. The effects of different transition metals used in catalytic reduction amination were discussed and compared, and some suggestions were given. The last section highlights the catalytic activities of bi- and tri-metallic catalysts. Indeed, this latter family is very promising and simultaneously benefits from increased stability, and selectivity, compared to monometallic NPs, due to synergistic substrate activation. Few comprehensive reviews focusing on Earth-abundant transition metals catalyst has been published since 1948, although several authors reported some summaries dealing with one or the other part of this aspect. It is hoped that this critical review will inspire researchers to develop new efficient and selective earth-abundant metal catalysts for highly, environmentally sustainable reductive amination methods, as well as improve the pharmaceutical industry and related chemical synthesis company traditional method with the utilization of the green method widely.     

Reductive Amination of Aldehydes and Amines with an Efficient Pd/NiO Catalyst

By applying a simple Pd/NiO catalyst, the reductive amination of amines and aldehydes can progress efficiently under mild reaction conditions, and 24 substituted amines with different structures were synthesized with up to 98% isolated yields.     

硝基芳烃与醇还原胺化:催化剂和催化机制

胺类化合物由于其化学结构和性质上的特点,在合成药物、染料和精细化学品等方面有着重要的应用。胺类化合物的合成方法很多,其中硝基芳烃与醇还原胺化反应由于可以“一锅”法将性质稳定、来源广泛的硝基芳烃、醇转化为各类胺类化合物,且无需提供额外的氢源,从而成为研究的热点。本文即以硝基芳烃与醇还原胺化反应路径为主线,从催化剂及其催化机制两方面对硝基芳烃与醇还原胺化反应的研究进展进行综述,分别对已开发的贵金属催化剂、光催化剂及一些其他类型催化剂作了介绍,重点阐述了催化剂的催化性能、底物适用范围和催化机制。尽管目前各类催化体系都已取得较大的进展,但在一定程度上依然存在着催化剂成本高,底物适应性窄,需要大量使用碱性助剂、溶剂、供氢试剂等问题。基于以上问题,本文指出硝基芳烃与醇还原胺化应重点发展绿色高效、廉价、普适性好、通用性强的催化体系;同时,还要系统地对各种催化剂的催化机制进行深入的研究,为催化体系的开发提供指导。     

Iridium-Catalyzed and pH-Dependent Reductions of Nitroalkenes to Ketones

A highly chemoselective conversion of α,β-disubstituted nitroalkenes to ketones is developed. An acid-compatible iridium catalyst serves as the key to the conversion. At a 2500 S/C ratio, nitroalkenes were readily converted to ketones in up to 72% isolated yields. A new mechanistic mode involving the reduction of nitroalkene to nitrosoalkene and N-alkenyl hydroxylamine is proposed. This conversion is ready to amplify to a gram-scale synthesis. The pH value plays an indispensable role in controlling the chemoselectivity.